A Path With Paws

I’ve always had a very deep spiritual connection and I’ve always believed I could heal anything in my body through that.  It is also how I work with my animals.

So three and a half years ago when my body completely gave out on me I lost faith.  I couldn’t walk more than 50 feet and needed a cane to do so. I couldn’t drive, shop, or work and was housebound.  I had six hours of violent convulsions a day and my existence was fearing and waiting for the next wave of them to hit. None of my doctors or healers could help me.  Enter a glimmer of hope. A surgery in a far of land.  It was divine intervention, but it made me realize sometimes we can’t do it on our own, we need help!  To me faith and magic had always traveled through my hands, not others.

I think we need to realize that faith comes in all forms.  I’m still struggling with that thought.

So in April 2019 I headed to Switzerland to have surgery on my brain. People say I was brave or asked if I was scared.  I wasn’t either, I was desperate.  My only fear was I would get there and they would turn me down.  This was my last hope!

Surgery felt like being reborn – with each sonification to kill part of my brain my life returned.  It felt like floating in the womb or being in zero gravity and with each zap my body stopped shaking.  That evening I walked up and down the hallway in the hospital almost like a normal person.  The next day I went for a walk by myself – only a few blocks but more than I had done in a long time.  I didn’t even care that I was bald.

With time my symptoms got worse on my untreated side though and I knew I had to go back for surgery on side two, but enter COVID, it was impossible to travel overseas.  Two trips planned and cancelled.  And I knew I needed a recheck before surgery could be scheduled, which meant two trips.

Finally the greatest of news, I could get a travel visa for medical need.  However I needed someone to go with me, possibly on an open-ended trip, since I planed to stay if I could get surgery before the end of the year.  My parents were too old to travel with the COVID threat.  I put it out to family and friends – who could go to Switzerland with me for two and possibly up to eight weeks?  My former co-worker had a friend who was unemployed because of COVID and loved to travel.  We met and she agreed to go with me. Divine intervention again!  

So on Halloween of 2020 we set off to Switzerland on a large plane with about 30 people on it!  Off to Switzerland where the COVID rate was the highest in the world.  And they had a cancellation for five weeks out!  More divine intervention!  We lived in Switzerland for 6.5 weeks most of it waiting for surgery.  And then the miraculous day arrived.  I was more nervous this time, because I had something to lose if things went wrong.  But I knew things would be ok, because everything had worked to get me there.  Once again in the machine, floating in zero gravity, feeling my body improve.

Two days after surgery we went up on the mountaintop in the snow and walked around for over an hour. Amazing! Something I could not have done for years!

So I realize fully with my brain that I have always been protected.  But I have a harder time embodying that fully now because I still live in an abnormal body.  I am 80-90% better but I still struggle. I am coming to terms that I will never be normal again.  But I have not backslid at all since surgery (which it has now been over three years for side one and 1.5 years for side two.) In fact I am still healing and getting better.  In addition because of sharing my story, others have gone through surgery and gotten better!  I have realized that others have struggles, whether mental or physical, as well and many of those are invisible.

So I am slowly getting my faith and magic back. I realize it may take time!

I hope to get back to writing animal stories but I needed to share mine first!

We write to share information but mostly we write to express ourselves – either the beauty or knowledge that lives inside of all of us.

One of the hardest things for me is not being able to express myself well anymore – hand writing is impossible, typing is hard and my speech while improving is not what it was.

I want to write though, even if it’s slow and short at first.

I have this creativity that lives deep in my core that wants to escape.

I wrote a story for a friend this week,  it was not my best work but it was the first time I had written in 3.5 years.  It proved I can still do it!

I have had so much I have wanted to express in that time.  The anguish of being housebound and feeling like my god had let me down, the miracle of surgery, the anguish of realizing I will never completely shed this disease.  Getting my life back slowly, one step at a time literally.  Losing my magic, starting to regain it again.  

So stay tuned – there will be some writing here in the future!

I have such a long article to write in my head about getting brain surgery last week in Switzerland but for now it’s not going up.

I’m not interested in the details at the moment even though I learned so much about the brain. What I’m interested in is resting in comfort, being able to take care of myself again and living.  My right leg is bothering me a lot and I’m trying not to focus on it as I think it will improve but the fact that my brain goes there is refreshing.  My brain is no longer wondering if I’ll get stuck walking, if I’ll be able to stand in a check out line, or when the next wave of convulsions will happen. Instead I have a dystonic somewhat painful leg and you know something – I’ll take it.

Tomorrow I return home to my son, animals, and friends.  I get to have a life again.  I get to shop, cook, and drive, do things with friends.  So I am rejoicing in that! I get to go back to the work I love soon and help animals again! I am not perfect but I am better and full of gratitude for that!  

I’ve recently been listening to a set of lectures from Dr. Carmen Colitz, who is a veterinary ophthalmologist. I’m impressed with the product she developed, Ocu-glo, which has the ability to prevent or slow down both cataract formation and retinal atrophy.

She highly recommends it for all dogs with PRA and also diabetic dogs (who over 50% go blind). I would also use it in the older dogs who start to get the lens clouding. It is a blend of antioxidants and very safe in any dog. Here’s an Amazon link Ocu-glo and for small dogs Ocu-glo under 10lbs.

One of my clients brought to my attention recently that most Melatonin contains xylitol which can be highly toxic to dogs. I have not had any toxicity in dogs who have been on the brands with xylitol so I think the amount is low enough to not cause major issues. However I highly recommend not using the brands that contain xylitol.

The one brand that seems to be safe is Natural Factors Melatonin. Melatonin is commonly used in dogs for sleep disturbance issues and seasonal alopecia. Thanks Relaena!

It’s sad to see our animal companions no longer be able to do the things they once could do as they age and grow older. All older animals have some amount of arthritis, although some have many more problems with it.

Unfortunately, Western medicine has very few options for treating arthritis and uses mostly drugs, to treat the pain. This is starting to change with some veterinarians doing stem cell and plasma rich platelet injections. However these treatments can still be expensive. Ask your vet about if these treatments are right for your dog. Some animals are not able to tolerate these drugs and many times animals are on three different drugs and it still isn’t enough.

In some animals arthritis manifests as weakness caused by the inflammation pushes on the nerves. Many dogs walk around like their feet are asleep, tripping over things, stumbling and no longer having the strength to jump into the car or onto the bed. Unfortunately because they can no longer walk as far or do as much as they used to, their muscles start to atrophy or waste away, causing a vicious cycle. As the weakness increased, they do less, which causes more atrophy from disuse, leading to more weakness and more atrophy and less activity. In the end many of these animals can no longer get up on their own or even take a short walk.

In other animals arthritis will manifest as pain, which can also prevent movement and cause the weakness/atrophy cycle. Many of these animals will become moody and withdrawn and may even snap and bite at their people out of fear of pain. It is so hard to see our friends have so much pain that they no longer want our affection.

In most animals there is a combination of pain and weakness.

Usually dogs suffer more than cats because they carry more weight and are used to daily activity. Also people often don’t notice that their cats are painful because they spend so much time sitting and sleeping

So what do we do for our friends to help them live out their old years happy and pain free? Often the best approach involves both drugs for pain and holistic treatments to support the body.

• Acupuncture Being an acupuncturist, I always recommend acupuncture first. Of course, this is also because I have seen how well it works in the animals I treat. I often find that if I can work with animals when they first have problems, they do so well, I only need to treat them every one to three months. Unfortunately most of the animals I see have had problems for a while and their people only learned about acupuncture when they had tried everything that western medicine had to offer. In these animals, acupuncture can still work and work well but usually treatments need to be closer together.

  It is so nice to see these animals happy and able to enjoy life again!



• Hydrotherapy is a great option especially in dogs who have muscle atrophy. Unfortunately it cannot be done with cats, although Sheila Wells at Wellspings has told me they have worked with rabbits before. Hydrotherapy is done in a small swimming pool and involves massage and physical therapy in the water. I have seen excellent results with hydrotherapy especially combined with acupuncture. Hydrotherapy helps to rebuild muscles, increase range of motion and work out sore and sensitive areas of the body without the impact on the body of exercise on land. My favorite pool is Wellsprings in Seattle Washington. They have a great website with lots of information and photos that I love to refer people to. Click on the link to check it out!



• Herbs
  I have worked with Chinese herbs with many of these arthritic dogs and some cats. The combination of acupuncture and herbs usually helps with pain and movement and helps animals maintain between treatments. I rarely use Chinese herbs in cats because they are very sensitive to them and it is hard to medicate cats. I sell an senior dog herbal formula called Senior Dog Support, through my etsy shop, that helps with arthritis pain and improves blood circulation into the joints. Your holistic veterinarian may have something else they recommend.



• Fish oil/ Omega oils
  The Omega 3 Fatty Acids in fish and cod liver oil actually helps decrease arthritic inflammation in dogs (not true for cats although it helps with other things). Adding a little fish oil to the diet can help many animals.My favorite brand is Nordic Naturals – Pet Cod Liver Oil . Nordic Naturals is one of the best brands for quality and they test for heavy metals and contaminants.
• Glucosamine/MSM/chondroitin
  These supplements help to decrease inflammation and rebuild damaged cartilage. They are often sold in combination. The nice thing about these supplements is that they have few side effects and are very safe. Some animals have a wonderful response to them and some have almost no response. It usually takes a month to six weeks to see if your animal will have a positive response. Adequan, similar to glucosamine is also available in an injectable form and works better in some animals. It is also a lot easier to give to cats who are hard to medicate daily. After the initial series of injections it usually only needs to be given once a month. Adequan can only be purchased through your veterinarian. My favorite glucosamine product is Sea Mobility Beef Joint Rescue jerk treats, they work well and are very tasty. There are other good ones out there.

Infra-red light therapy – Infrared light helps ease the pain of arthritis in joints and increase blood circulation to the area. It is very cheap to do and can be done at home. See my article Infrared Light Therapy for kidney failure, incontinence and arthritis.
Chiropractics
Many animals have subluxations of their spine especially as they age. A good chiropractor can often help with mobility and pain. I have found that chiropractic adjustments work best in animals with a very tight back and more pain then weakness. For my own cat, chiropractic adjustments have worked better than anything else we have tried and have made his life much better. Make sure you find a chiropractor who is used to working with animals and knows animal anatomy.
• Massage/Acupressure
  Massage can help to loosen tight muscles and increase blood circulation. It also can help with pain.We know it works for us, why not for our animal friends. Once again make sure you find a massage practitioner who is certified to work with animals. I have two amazing massage therapists I work with in Seattle, Kim Rogers and Jen Streit. Kim also does humans!

  Acupressure works with the acupuncture points and helps decrease pain and relax muscles.

  There are many great books on acupressure and massage for animals. Here are a few
  The Well-Connected Dog: A Guide to Canine Acupressure
  Acu-Cat: A Guide to Feline Acupressure
  The Healing Touch for Dogs: The Proven Massage Program for Dogs, Revised Edition
  The Healing Touch for Cats: The Proven Massage Program for Cats, Revised Edition
  Four Paws Five Directions: A Guide to Chinese Medicine for Cats and Dogs



• Reiki/Bowen/Polarity/Craniosacral and other energy therapies These therapies help stimulate the body to heal and can decrease pain and improve quality of life. Since there is little regulation of these therapies it is important to get a referral before seeing someone. This is especially true of Reiki since there are so many people who practice it. A good practitioner can make a huge difference in an animal’s quality of life.

It is better to do one thing and stick with it than to jump around between therapies. Often times animals will began with me doing acupuncture and herbs and then we will add in other therapies as needed. If I can’t help an animal with acupuncture I will refer them to another practitioner to try something else. Don’t make too many changes all at once in an old animal’s life. Go slowly instead.

I often get the question, “how do I prevent cancer in my dog or cat?”

This is always a hard question to answer. There are so many factors involved in the development of cancer that even doing everything we can to avoid it, animals can still get cancer.

In addition cancer forms when multiple control processes in the body fail. There are many things we still do not understand about both why cancer forms and how to treat it effectively. I am certain that in the next fifty years we will understand a lot more and with the new gene and stem cell therapies that are emerging we will look back on how we work with cancer now as barbaric and ineffective.

Cancer is a breakdown of the immune system and the processing and chemical/hormonal systems in the body that regulate cell growth. Every day cancer cells form in our body and our immune system immediately finds them and destroys them. In addition there are chemical and hormonal processes in our body which stop cells from becoming cancerous. These processes make it so cells age and die naturally as new cells take their place. In cancer this does not happen. The signals for cells to age don’t work and cells rapidly divide and reproduce.

We know that there are genetic factors involved in cancer. This is especially apparent in the purebred dogs. The Bernese Mountain dogs are the most likely breed to have cancer. I have never meet one who did not die of cancer, which is a shame for such a beautiful and kind dog. Most get cancer before their eighth birthday. They are closely followed in percentage of cancer cases by the Golden Retrievers and Boxers, who also are very prone to cancer.

Toxins and pollutants also have a role in cancer. BPA in plastics has been linked to cancer. Estrogens in our water supply may also contribute. We know there are industrial chemicals in the environment and pesticides and herbicides. These chemicals lead to cell damage and chemical abnormalities in the body, which can cause a failure of signals that stop cells from becoming cancerous or in a weakened immune system.

So with all these factors, what can we do to prevent cancer in your animal companions?

• In my opinion the number one thing you can do to help your animal friend is to feed the best diet possible. I prefer raw diets of high quality meat but a good home cooked or canned diet can also be great. If you feed canned food make sure the company which makes the food is not using BPA coated cans. If you can’t afford anything but dry feed a high quality dry food with high protein. Consider adding cancer fighting foods to their diet See Diets for Cancer – you are what you eat a fighting cancer machine.
• Avoid exposure to pesticides, herbicides and other toxins. Make sure you don’t use chemicals on your lawn, and when you are out walking your dog try to avoid the lawns that are too green and weed free. Be careful what chemicals you use in your home. Do not use harsh cleaning chemicals around your animal.
• Only use flea medications if needed unless your animal has a flea allergy. Yes these are also pesticides and the jury is still out on how toxic these products are to your animal friend. I feel like it is becoming too common to just put animals on year round flea treatment even when it is not needed. If you do use flea medications use the least toxic ones possible and avoid products with multiple ingredients.
• Avoid over vaccination. I do believe in vaccination but I believe the current vaccine schedules are more than is needed. There are studies confirming the links between vaccination and certain types of cancer like fibrosarcoma. While the correlation is harder to prove with other cancers there does seem to be association between over vaccination and certain cancers like hemangiosarcoma and leukemia. See To vaccinate or not to vaccinate that is the question part 1 cats and part 2 dogs.
• Keep your animal from becoming overweight and make sure they get exercise. Overweight animals are more prone to both cancer and inflammatory disorders such as asthma, inflammatory bowl disease, diabetes and Cushings disease. Exercise helps promote good blood flow and a healthy immune system.



• Do not smoke around your animal. There are studies that show that second hand smoke significantly increases the risk of cancer in your animal by three times the rate of animals in non-smoking households.
• Depending on the source of your water consider using a water filtration system. Some water contains toxins, hormones, and heavy metal contamination.
• If you have an animal at high risk of cancer because of breed or because of factors you can not control consider some extra anti-cancer tools
  1. Add supplements to their diet to help control cancer like Cod Liver Oil, extra vitamin A and D, IP-6, Coenzyme Q10 and/or mushroom supplements like MUSH Medicinal Mushroom Blend or Host Defense MyCommunity
  2. Work with an acupuncturist or holistic vet to do treatments to help correct any imbalances early or to do occasional detox treatments. This can be done with acupuncture, herbs, homeopathics or other therapies.
  3. Get regular check ups to catch cancer early and when it is treatable.

Is there more cancer in our animals then there used to be?

It is hard to tell. I believe a lot of cancer used to not get diagnosed. It was the ain’t doing right dog in the backyard that wasn’t taken to the vet, the cat who just wandered off one day.

We definitely do a lot more diagnosing these days and with it catch more cancer then we used to. However I think our world has also become more toxic, with chemicals and pollutants. Our cats and dogs are down on the grass, sniffing, eating, licking their feet. Our animals are on our couches and beds that have flame retardant chemicals on them, they are eating foods that are becoming more unhealthy, they are being treated with more pesticides then every. So it is hard to say if there is really more cancer or that we are just doing more to diagnose and treat it then ever before.

There is no way to completely avoid the risk of cancer but there are ways to decrease the risk. Many of these suggestions also can help avoid the risk of other chronic diseases and help animals have more energy and vitality as they age.

Return to Integrative and Holistic Methods for Treating Cancer in Cats and Dogs

You know I’m ready for this year to be done. I’ve always said that being kicked in the behind gives you a chance to look at your life and fix those places you have gone astray but it doesn’t mean it’s not painful when it happens.

I feel like it’s not just me. Most of my healer friends have also had a really hard year.

This year, I’ve lost some of the dogs and cats who had been in my practice for longer than any others, who were my friends. This year I watched the people connected to them grieve, as did I. This year the left side of my body gave out on me. This year my son did not graduate from high school. This year my husband left. So if you are wondering why I haven’t been writing, that kind of sums it up.

In February the left side of my body suddenly stopped working correctly. I couldn’t move my left toes, could barely use my left fingers, and the whole left side of my body would shake uncontrollably. After waiting a month to get in with the neurologist, I was sent for an MRI, STAT possible diagnosis of brain tumor high on the list. I remember lying in the MRI machine making deals with god over not wanting to die at age of 42. After an agonizing wait, I finally got the news that my MRI was normal. And after a sigh of relief, that I wasn’t going to die in the next year, I realize that the things left on the list were also pretty dire, with Parkinson’s being at the top.

But you know something. I learned a long time ago that diagnoses tie you to the condition. And according to a dog named Lou, diagnoses are only as good as the paper they’re printed on. And I knew from my work with dogs who did not understand what diseases they had, that healing was possible even in the face of serious disease when our mind had not yet resigned to being stuck in a certain state. So I made the decision to stop all diagnostics and not let someone put a name to what was going on with me. There’s a lot of power in naming something and I chose to take a path without names. If I thought there was things on the list there were easily treatable I would’ve not taking this path, but those had already been ruled out.

And so began my dive into one of the most intense healing journeys I’ve ever been on. Over the past year, I’ve gathered together one of the most amazing groups of healers, who believe in me and have helped me work through this illness. The left side of my body is still abnormal, it still shakes, I still can’t type. But I have gotten better and my symptoms have changed for the better and they no longer fit Parkinson’s disease. And emotionally I’m starting to heal. I realize the damage that is been done by me shoving emotions into my body for the past 42 years and I’m cleaning house. It’s not pleasant, everything I have ever decided not to feel I am feeling now. Believe me that can be painful. My body and my illness are guiding me on this journey

I now consider my neurologic disease my super power, at least most of the time. Yes there’s times I still get scared, there’s times I still feel alone, there’s times I think why me. But overall, it has enabled me to be more in touch with who I am, it has made me a better healer, and it’s opened up a journey where I will be well someday. I’m learning so much more about healing than I ever knew, and I’m learning that sometimes I have to put myself first, and I’m learning about the power that emotion has to make our body ill and how we can reverse that.

And as much as this year has been incredibly hard, I am so blessed. I have the best job in the world. I have a job I can do even with my left side not functioning right. I am daily blessed by working with some of the kindest people and the best animals in the world. My work helps me heal. Even on the days that I’m ready to give up, I know that there are so many people that support me and care about me. And there’s so many people that I care about also.

But I’m still ready for this year to be over with. So here’s to an incredible 2016, full of healing, love, and new beginnings. Blessings to you all. And an incredible thank you to everyone that has supported me on this journey.

It’s sad to see our animal companions no longer be able to do the things they once could do as they age and grow older. All older animals have some amount of arthritis, although some have many more problems with it.

Unfortunately, Western medicine has very few options for treating arthritis and uses mostly drugs, to treat the pain. This is starting to change with some veterinarians doing stem cell and plasma rich platelet injections. However these treatments can still be expensive. Ask your vet about if these treatments are right for your dog. Some animals are not able to tolerate these drugs and many times animals are on three different drugs and it still isn’t enough.

In some animals arthritis manifests as weakness caused by the inflammation pushes on the nerves. Many dogs walk around like their feet are asleep, tripping over things, stumbling and no longer having the strength to jump into the car or onto the bed. Unfortunately because they can no longer walk as far or do as much as they used to, their muscles start to atrophy or waste away, causing a vicious cycle. As the weakness increased, they do less, which causes more atrophy from disuse, leading to more weakness and more atrophy and less activity. In the end many of these animals can no longer get up on their own or even take a short walk.

In other animals arthritis will manifest as pain, which can also prevent movement and cause the weakness/atrophy cycle. Many of these animals will become moody and withdrawn and may even snap and bite at their people out of fear of pain. It is so hard to see our friends have so much pain that they no longer want our affection.

In most animals there is a combination of pain and weakness.

Usually dogs suffer more than cats because they carry more weight and are used to daily activity. Also people often don’t notice that their cats are painful because they spend so much time sitting and sleeping

So what do we do for our friends to help them live out their old years happy and pain free?

• Acupuncture Being an acupuncturist, I always recommend acupuncture first. Of course, this is also because I have seen how well it works in the animals I treat. I often find that if I can work with animals when they first have problems, they do so well, I only need to treat them every one to three months. Unfortunately most of the animals I see have had problems for a while and their people only learned about acupuncture when they had tried everything that western medicine had to offer. In these animals, acupuncture can still work and work well but usually treatments need to be closer together.

  It is so nice to see these animals happy and able to enjoy life again!



• Hydrotherapy is a great option especially in dogs who have muscle atrophy. Unfortunately it cannot be done with cats, although Sheila Wells at Wellspings has told me they have worked with rabbits before. Hydrotherapy is done in a small swimming pool and involves massage and physical therapy in the water. I have seen excellent results with hydrotherapy especially combined with acupuncture. Hydrotherapy helps to rebuild muscles, increase range of motion and work out sore and sensitive areas of the body without the impact on the body of exercise on land. My favorite pool is Wellsprings in Seattle Washington. They have a great website with lots of information and photos that I love to refer people to. Click on the link to check it out!



• Herbs
  I have worked with Chinese herbs with many of these arthritic dogs and some cats. The combination of acupuncture and herbs usually helps with pain and movement and helps animals maintain between treatments. I rarely use Chinese herbs in cats because they are very sensitive to them and it is hard to medicate cats. I sell an senior dog herbal formula called Senior Dog Support, through my etsy shop, that helps with arthritis pain and improves blood circulation into the joints. Your holistic veterinarian may have something else they recommend.



• Fish oil/ Omega oils
  The Omega 3 Fatty Acids in fish and cod liver oil actually helps decrease arthritic inflammation in dogs (not true for cats although it helps with other things). Adding a little fish oil to the diet can help many animals.My favorite brand is Nordic Naturals – Pet Cod Liver Oil . Nordic Naturals is one of the best brands for quality and they test for heavy metals and contaminants.
• Glucosamine/MSM/chondroitin
  These supplements help to decrease inflammation and rebuild damaged cartilage. They are often sold in combination. The nice thing about these supplements is that they have few side effects and are very safe. Some animals have a wonderful response to them and some have almost no response. It usually takes a month to six weeks to see if your animal will have a positive response. Adequan, similar to glucosamine is also available in an injectable form and works better in some animals. It is also a lot easier to give to cats who are hard to medicate daily. After the initial series of injections it usually only needs to be given once a month. Adequan can only be purchased through your veterinarian. My favorite glucosamine product is Sea Mobility Beef Joint Rescue jerk treats, they work well and are very tasty. There are other good ones out there.

Infra-red light therapy – Infrared light helps ease the pain of arthritis in joints and increase blood circulation to the area. It is very cheap to do and can be done at home. See my article Infrared Light Therapy for kidney failure, incontinence and arthritis.
Chiropractics
Many animals have subluxations of their spine especially as they age. A good chiropractor can often help with mobility and pain. I have found that chiropractic adjustments work best in animals with a very tight back and more pain then weakness. For my own cat, chiropractic adjustments have worked better than anything else we have tried and have made his life much better. Make sure you find a chiropractor who is used to working with animals and knows animal anatomy.
• Massage/Acupressure
  Massage can help to loosen tight muscles and increase blood circulation. It also can help with pain.We know it works for us, why not for our animal friends. Once again make sure you find a massage practitioner who is certified to work with animals. I have two amazing massage therapists I work with in Seattle, Kim Rogers and Jen Streit. Kim also does humans!

  Acupressure works with the acupuncture points and helps decrease pain and relax muscles.

  There are many great books on acupressure and massage for animals. Here are a few
  The Well-Connected Dog: A Guide to Canine Acupressure
  Acu-Cat: A Guide to Feline Acupressure
  The Healing Touch for Dogs: The Proven Massage Program for Dogs, Revised Edition
  The Healing Touch for Cats: The Proven Massage Program for Cats, Revised Edition
  Four Paws Five Directions: A Guide to Chinese Medicine for Cats and Dogs



• Reiki/Bowen/Polarity/Craniosacral and other energy therapies These therapies help stimulate the body to heal and can decrease pain and improve quality of life. Since there is little regulation of these therapies it is important to get a referral before seeing someone. This is especially true of Reiki since there are so many people who practice it. A good practitioner can make a huge difference in an animal’s quality of life.

It is better to do one thing and stick with it than to jump around between therapies. Often times animals will began with me doing acupuncture and herbs and then we will add in other therapies as needed. If I can’t help an animal with acupuncture I will refer them to another practitioner to try something else. Don’t make too many changes all at once in an old animal’s life. Go slowly instead.

Degenerative myelopathy is a grave diagnosis. There is still so little we know about this disease and there is no known cure or even a treatment that can control symptoms long term.

I’m not going to dive too deeply into DM but just briefly cover the condition. DM is a degenerative nerve disorder of dogs. We most often compare it to ALS in humans and though it is a similar disease in presentation there are many differences. (In DM unlike ALS it is the axons of nerves that are effected and there is no glutamate build up). DM causes a progressive lose of nervous function starting in the hind legs and progressing to the front of the body. It can look very similar to a disc compression issue when it starts. We know there is a genetic mutation that has a large role in DM and this mutation can be tested for by your veterinarian. Not all dogs with the mutation will get DM. However in a dog with progressive hind limb weakness where disc disease has been ruled out, a positive mutation test is usually considered diagnostic. There is some thought that early and repetitive trauma to the spinal code in the thoracic spine is a precursor to this disease for dogs with the genetic mutation.

We cannot reverse or even stop the progression of this disease but there are things that can be done to slow it down. Even with slowing things down, it is hard to get more than a year of time after diagnosis and often times it is less.

Dr. Clemmons has developed a protocol that many folks follow. Unfortunately most people only use part of his protocol, the supplements he recommends. This protocol is actually three fold and for the best results all parts of his protocol should be followed. I’ve also added in some herbals that seem to help slow down progression used by Dr. Steve Mardsen.

1. Diet – these dogs should be on an unprocessed diet high in antioxidants. Whole foods are going to be the best – either a cooked stew, raw diet or homemade diet. Ideally high in multicolored vegetables and some fruits, low in grains and with good quality meat or fish. (Fish must always be cooked)



2. Physical exercise and body work/manipulation – this ideally would include swimming or hydrotherapy to keep the muscles strong, massage to improve muscle function, acupuncture to help with blood flow, and chiropractic adjustment to help keep the spinal system in alignment. Although all parts of this protocol are important the very most important is physical exercise every day if possible.
3. Herbs and supplements – these would include antioxidants to help prevent cell damage. Here are Dr. Clemmon’s recommendations. I also recommend an herbal containing Chai Hu, Milk Thistle and Curcumin. I use a modification of Xiao Chai Hu Tang with added Milk Thistle and Curcumin. One of my favorite veterinary herbalists, Dr. Mardsen, has done some of his own work with this disease and found that Chai Hu or bupleurum has much added benefit in that it stops inflammation in the spinal cord and reduces one of the main players in the disease, superoxide dismutase. Curcumin and milk thistle have long been used with DM to reduce gliosis and cytokine production in the spinal code leading reduction of inflammation.

I hope that sometime in the future we will understand more about this disease and will have a cure or better treatments. It is so hard to see those we love struggle.

More reading on Dr. Clemmon’s protocol and DM

• Hopeful News for Degenerative Neurologic Diseases
• Dr. Roger Clemmons and the Fight against Degenerative Myelopathy of German Shepherd Dogs